South West Post - February 2024

The International Association of Lions Clubs

District 105SW

FEBRUARY 2024 NEWSLETTER In this month’s issue DG’s Message Cabinet meeting dates Tiverton Lions St Austell Lions Important Insurance details Weston-super-Mare Lions Budleigh Salterton Lions Plymouth Lions Weymouth & Portland Lions Babbycome & St Marychurch Lions MD105 RLLI Burnham-on-Sea Lions

District Governor - Lion James Mathers January has been a busy month during which I will have visited eight Lions clubs and presented a host of long-service chevrons, which only arrived from Oak Brook at the very end of November. In October I had to halt visits to Lions clubs since my cataracts were making driving at night quite difficult. Having now had both eyes resolved, there has been much catching up to be done.

Out of the stocks immediately after New Year, Lion Gail and I travelled to Glastonbury & Street Lions for a very interesting evening and where I had the opportunity to present to Lion Ian Burt a 50-year long-service chevron and certificate signed by our patron.

Ian was initially a Leo, which counts towards his long service, and held the position of MD Leo Council Chair.

There is, however, a distinct disadvantage of attending this club – its location close to Clarkes Village where inevitably your wallet is significantly lighter when you leave.

The following week was a bit of a marathon, beginning with Tavistock, followed by Seaton & District and then Radstock and Midsomer

Tavistock Lions MD105 Convention Truro Lions Young Ambassador Awards Barnsaple Lions Blackmore Vale Lions Fowey River Lions 105 SW District Convention

Norton. Tavistock is a strong club in terms of its membership and involvement with the local community. Here, I was able to distribute newly created pins celebrating mission 1.5 to both new members and sponsors. I was also able to present several long-service chevrons, including 35 years to Lion Richard Jones and 45 years to Lion Steve

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Club news from around the South West DG Lion James Mathers

Grummitt. You may notice from the photographs that everyone was well wrapped up. When Lion Gail and I first arrived, a directors’ meeting was in progress and it was bitterly cold, although by the end of the club meeting it had warmed up a little.

At Seaton and District Lions Club, our newly appointed 2nd Vice District Governor Richard Allen was also in attendance in his capacity as Zone Chair, so I took the opportunity to personally present him with his long service award and new District gong. Seaton Lions are a cheery lot, and it was a light-hearted business meeting.

It was a pleasure to present Lion Geoffrey Connett with his 20-year chevron; Lions Roger Broom and Rosemary Partridge-Hogbin with their 25-year chevrons; and Lion John Norcott with his 35-year chevron.

The next port of call was Radstock & Midsomer Norton Lions Club for a cosy discussion. The South West UK Virtual Lions Club in anchored here. I was delighted to present two long-service chevrons to Lions Raymond James and Richard Munden and a 25year Charter Monarch chevron to PDG Sally Marsh.

There was, however, a touch of sadness. I had 50-year chevron and certificate signed by our sponsor for Lion Derek Yelling, who passed to higher service on Boxing Day. The Club’s secretary was going to attend his funeral and agreed to pass both on to the family in recognition of his long years of service.

In a short break from Lions business, Gail and I travelled to Bournemouth to celebrate her mother’s 90th birthday.

After catching my breath over the weekend, it was then

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Club news from around the South West DG Lion James Mathers

off to Weston-Super-Mare, Ilfracombe and Lyn Lions clubs. With 26 fully committed members, Weston Lions are, as I put it during the meeting, “Lions on steroids”.

They are well known for their beer festival and Mudmasters, but the list of their activities and future events is impressive and it was clear that the impact on their community is well recognised, to the extent that they regularly attract new younger members. That said, they still have members who have completed long service, and I was happy to present Lion Geoff Brittan with his 30-year chevron. Next stop Ilfracombe. Unfortunately, my schedule meant that my meeting with Ilfracombe Lions took place when their President Kit Leck was absent on family business, so I had to leave his long-service chevron with their Secretary John Forsdike, who conducted the meeting and is pictured receiving his 15 -year chevron. Lion Gail and I were made very welcome, and I was particularly impressed that they have access to holiday accommodation for 16 weeks of the year, which is available for families in need supported by Lions Clubs. The following day we visited the chalet, and it is well equipped to provide for people with physical disabilities, with ramps for wheelchairs and even a hoist. More details can be found in this issue of our newsletter. Finally, on this leg of the journey, Lion Gail and I visited Lyn Lions Club. Many of you will know that the original club folded due to lack of numbers but was revived by members of the Lyn Vally Classic Car Club and it is now known as a specialist club. The club has done much for its local community and raised significant funds as a direct result of holding a classic car event, which has grown in popularity over several years.

Unfortunately, and I will not hide the fact, they are very disappointed about the new insurance arrangements, which place their main event into the red category and consequently not covered by the insurance policy recently negotiated. I will explore with them whether we can find a way forward.

However, at the end of a robust meeting I was able to present their President Lion David Hutton and Lion Richard Leaworthy with their

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Club news from around the South West DG Lion James Mathers

long-service chevrons.

Last but not least, I was able to present Chair of Zone A, Phil Bunt and his wife Lion Jill with their 15-year Charter chevrons.

For the remainder of the month, I shall be visiting Frome Lions and attending the Council of Governors meeting via Zoom, with all the reports to read before then. Looking at the diary February promises to be just as busy.

Finally, I have asked that an important message is placed in this issue about insurance.

Concerns have been raised that some clubs may not have been adhering to the conditions imposed by our insurers. Failure to do so could result in a claim being rejected and members becoming personally responsible for any loss or damage. See page 6.

Lion David Fitzpatrick

Here they are, just eight eggs from the total that will be distributed around the Tiverton area in local pubs, hairdressers and other establishments to raise awareness and money to donate to Lions local charities and Childrens Hospice South West.

They will all be delivered by the beginning of February to give nearly eight weeks for all 100 tickets per egg basket to be sold.

The baskets, packaging, eggs and other goodies were purchased separately and assembled into the good-looking prizes by Tiverton club members. This will be the third year that they have done this following the successes of previous years.

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Club news from around the South West Lion Roger Dovey

Local good causes to benefit from £3,000 Santa Sleigh collections St. Austell Lions Club would like to thank the many volunteers who helped collecting with our annual Santa Sleigh, which raised over £3000 for local good causes, and, of course, the many members of the public who generously contributed.

For further information please contact: Lions Club of St Austell President David Honey MBE St Austell (01726 74906 davidhoney90@gmail.com

DG Lion James

Cabinet

Date

st

1 Cabinet

Location

Saturday 12 August

Zoom (Completed)

nd

Saturday 4 November

rd

th

2 Cabinet

th

Okehampton (Completed)

3 Cabinet

Saturday 10 February

Zoom

4th Cabinet

Saturday 18th May

Okehampton

The next trip to Poland with aid for Ukraine will leave Cornwall on the 10th February 2024. To donate please follow the link to the sendinglovetoukraine website.

https://sendinglovetoukraine.org 5

Club news from around the South West DG Lion James Mathers

Very Important message about Insurance We should all be aware that new insurance arrangements are in place but it appears that some clubs may not have been abiding by the restrictions that are imposed. If a club holds an event which does not comply with the limitations placed by the insurers then should there be an incident for which they are legally responsible they would not be covered and the members would be personally liable to meet all the damages and costs.

There is no point in claiming that you didn’t know.

What should you do?

Go to the 105MD website and select “Insurance”.

Download the “Insurance Update” and read it.

Comply with the directions contained in that update which will include preparing a Risk Assessments as a minimum.

On the website check the activities list to determine whether your proposed event falls within the Green, Amber or Red categories to see what further steps you may be required to make.

If in doubt phone Lions MD Headquarters.

Please take these steps to avoid unhappy consequences.

If you want a link to “Insurance Update as of November 2023 then click on the link below.

You will probably have to press the control button and click on the link. You should then download the document. https://lionsclubs.co/MemberArea/home/lions-clubs-insurance/

If you want a link to the list of Activities in the Green, Amber or Red bands then click on the link below and once again you may have to press the control key and click on the link. https://lionsclubs.co/MemberArea/wp-admin/admin-ajax.php? juwpfisadmin=false&action=wpfd&task=file.download&wpfd_category_id=102&wpfd_file_id=7912&token=& preview=1 The above links may only work if you are using a computer. If you are using a tablet or smartphone you may have to log onto the MD105 website by typing this into Google or the like.

Please follow the above advice rather than taking an unnecessary risk

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Club news from around the South West Lion Kate Bach

Busy few months for Weston-super-Mare Lions Club The Weston Lions have had a busy few months. Here are some of the things they have been up to…………

The Lions supported the Weston Carnival by selling programmes and bucket- collecting. We were proud to lead the Carnival with some of our Lions on foot walking alongside our Lions-branded van.

It is always good to support other charity organisations and again this year we had our Christmas stand at the Rotary Club Fair. There was a lovely Christmas hamper and lots of raffle prizes to be won. Two of the lucky winners are pictured below.

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Club news from around the South West Lion Kate Bach

The Weston Lions together with the RNLI spent the weekend bucket-collecting at the Sea Shanty Festival and recently received a cheque from the Steepholmers for their efforts. This annual event has now become a mainstay in Weston’s calendar and provides a fantastic weekend of music, joy and piracy across the town. It requires a huge amount of effort to organise and the Steepholmers should be commended for their enthusiasm and fortitude in putting on such a great event.

Huge congratulations to Lion Eddie Wirth who has served with Weston Lions Club for 50 years. Eddie was presented, by Lion President Chick, with a certificate of appreciation at an evening club meeting.

Thank you, Eddie, for being such a valuable friend and member of our club.

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Club news from around the South West Lion Kate Bach

Following a recent donation from the Weston Lions, Lions Geoff and Kate were invited to visit the Great Western Air Ambulance Charity (GWAAC) bespoke airbase up in Almondsbury in November. The charity has a crew of critical care doctors, advanced practitioners, specialist paramedics and pilots that can be anywhere in their region in 20 minutes. They bring lifesaving medical and surgical skills straight to the patient.

On the tour, Kate and Geoff got to speak to one of the critical care Doctors, who told them first-hand about what the team do and shared some of the situations they had experienced.

They even got to look inside the critical care vehicles and the helicopter, seeing all the life-saving equipment each callout requires.

A video was shown of a mother whose daughter’s life was saved by the Great Western Air Ambulance, giving them a real-life understanding how this charity impacts people and how important its services are.

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Club news from around the South West Lion Kate Bach

Some Lions teddy bears had been dotted around Weston in local cafes and pubs, waiting for a lucky winner to guess their name correctly. All money raised from the bears was reinvested into the local community.

Lion President Chick presented a cheque to the Young Carers for them to use towards a fun day out or activity, which will be a welcome break for these carers, giving them a little respite from their daily challenges and responsibilities.

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Club news from around the South West Lion Kate Bach

The Weston Lions, in conjunction with Somerset Prostate Support Association, were proud to host a day of prostate awareness where 170 men signed up for the free PSA test – early test and diagnosis saves lives. It was a great day meeting the public and, of course, letting people know who and what the Lions are about. In fact, it looked like some people were having too much fun and monkeying around!

BRING ON 2024 - MUDMASTER AND THE ANNUAL REAL ALE FESTIVAL PLUS PLENTY MORE COMMUNITY PROJECTS

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Club news from around the South West Lion Kit Leck

Last Christmas we were asked by local resident Aaron if the Lions would like to be his main beneficiary for his Christmas Lights Spectacular. Of course, we didn’t need to be asked twice! This was Aaron’s second year of spreading Christmas cheer and the lighting display outside his home just gets bigger and better.

Switch On. Aaron’s Christmas Lights Spectacular One exciting development has been the use of IT to “broadcast” Christmas carols so that passers-by could have the full experience and donate via card payment readers.

Of course, no Ilfracombe town calendar would be complete without the ever popular Christmas street market. And as usual the Lions had a pitch. This year we were able to introduce our new Mane Game for younger children. The game was designed by one of our members and made for us by our local Men’s Shed. Basically, it involves pulling out a Lion by its tail and a winning Lion has a mane with a crown. The game proved to be popular; so popular that we very quickly ran out of our mini-Lion prizes. Of course, we had our Dip for a Lion with us. This is always a fund-raising winner.

Ilfracombe Christmas Street Market And whilst we’re about generosity, we must thank our local Tesco for allowing us to take over their foyer for our Christmas bucket collection.

We finally found a willing volunteer to wear the Lion costume, and yes I’m going to say it .. “ They were a roaring success!”

Christmas Bucket Collection So much so that we collected more money than ever before. And not only that, but the Lion also loved it so much that they’ve joined our Club.

It’s been a fantastic Combe Christmas, with nearly £1,000 in donations. In fact, our Treasurer is still beaming with excitement. And we’re still receiving donations. But one thing is for certain, last Christmas was our Christmas number one. Sorry, we couldn’t resist that! PS. We are still taking 2024 bookings for families living with disability at our holiday chalet on the Golden Coast Leisure Park, Woolacombe. Visit our website for more information. www.ilfracombeanddistrictlionsclub.com

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Club news from around the South West Lion Richard Allen

The environment is the winner with this litter-picking equipment donation In December Budleigh Salterton Lions Club purchased over £250 worth of children’s litter picking equipment and donated it to two local schools, Otterton Primary School and Drake's Primary School in East Budleigh. Budleigh Lions Kathy, Richard and Tom delivered the equipment to the children immediately after the Christmas holidays on 3rd January.

Emma Cocker from Otterton Primary School said, "Thank you again for coming along today with your very kind donation. The children are really pleased they can litter-pick more frequently. This is wonderful news. The children will be so pleased to hear that they can continue to make a positive difference to our environment more frequently. Thank you for being so supportive of our schools, it is really appreciated."

Drake's Primary School teacher Catherine Tribble said, “Thank you so much for your continued support, it really is much appreciated. Please extend a massive thank you from all the children and staff at Drake's to the Budleigh Lions for their fantastic support of our litter-picking efforts the litter-pickers themselves, the poster competition and now the sourcing of equipment which will allow the children to take part in litter-picking on a far more regular basis and make a real impact around our school and wider village. The children are looking forward to making a start this Friday!! We will be in touch with possible dates for the beach litter-pick in due course."

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Club news from around the South West Lion Richard Allen

Lions Richard, Tom and Chris join forces for the Plastic Free Sidmouth Beach Clean.

On Sunday 9th January two Budleigh Lions, Richard and Tom, joined forces with Sidmouth Lion Chris Hall and took part in the 'Sidmouth Plastic Warriors/Plastic Free Sidmouth' beach clean. Sidmouth Plastic Warriors is a group started in January 2018 with the purpose of reducing plastic waste in Sidmouth, clearing up what is already there and helping to push forward change locally, nationally and globally.

In July 2018 the group was very proud to announce that it had gained the ‘Plastic Free Coastline’ accreditation for the town of Sidmouth from 'Surfers Against Sewage'4

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Club news from around the South West Lion Richard Allen

Lions Christmas Day Bucket collection is just the job for Exmouth RNLI

Budleigh Salterton Lions Club held an official 'bucket collection' for the RNLI at the annual Christmas Day Swim at Budleigh beach.

People were very generous, and the Lions were delighted to present a cheque for £1,172.10 to representatives from the Exmouth RNLI at their January Business Meeting.

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Club news from around the South West Lion Roy Russell

The Lions Club of Plymouth over the Christmas period have carried out their annual collection at several supermarkets this year with the aim of raising funds for two worthy local charities, being Jeremiah’s Journey and Plymouth Young Carers Services.

The total funds raised amounted to £2.400.00 to include (an estimated Government Gift Aid allowance), which will be split equally between the two chosen charities and presented by the Lions Club of Plymouth President Bob Dight within the very near future.

The club’s thanks go to all who donated funds and to management and staff of Morrisons at Plymstock and Outlands Road branches, Asda at Estover and Tesco at Lee Mill and Woolwell branches.

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Club news from around the South West Lion Roy Russell

The Lions Club of Plymouth actively support the Plymouth Soup-Run for the homeless of Plymouth on a regular basis and have been experiencing some difficulty in funding for the purchase of basic ingredients required.

However the Physically Fabulous Keep fit and Dance groups of Pomphlett came to the rescue with a sizeable donation which was very much appreciated.

The picture taken below indicates Lion George Poad presenting a Certificate of Appreciation on behalf of The Lions Club of Plymouth to the kind and generous ladies of the Physically Fabulous Keep fit and Dance groups of Pomphlett.

Lion Kevin Brookes

CERTIFICATE OF APPRECIATION Weymouth & Portland Lions Club presented Matthew Brookes with a Certificate of Appreciation. Since his dad, Lion Kevin Brookes has been a Lion, Matthew, together with his brother Daniel, have both helped-out at the last five Motocross events and Christmas Day Harbour Swims.

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Club news from around the South West

Lion Geoff Payne

Race days prove to be a run-away success On Boxing Day and New Year’s Day Babbacombe & St Marychurch Lions ran Race Days for residents at Torbay Leisure Hotels. Between the racing stakes, raffle & calendar sales, we added £2,300 to our funds.

An early beneficiary of this is Torbay Prostate Support Association, which, following a presentation at our January meeting by its Chairman, received a donation of £250, sufficient to test 25 men.

Lion Peter Rowe

It is with sadness that we announce the passing to higher service of

Lion Alistair Barr Fowey River Lions Club Lion Derek Yelling Radstock & Midsomer Norton Lions Club

There are special people in our lives who never leave us, even after they have gone Please contact the respective Lions Club president or secretary for further details

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Club news from around the South West DG Lion James Mathers

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Club news from around the South West Lion Doug Plume

In November we finally finished the refurbishment of our train. It was built by members of the club sometime between 12 and 15 years ago, and last year we decided it was beginning to look its age. One of our members, Len, who is an electrician, felt that the wiring needed upgrading and we used this as an excuse to give it a thorough ‘do over’. Len also suggested changing the look so that it resembled the locomotive "The Lion" that featured in many films including the Ealing movie "The Titfield Thunderbolt". The Lions’ first outing was the Burnham-on-Sea Carnival, so the train was driven around the route with Rufus the Lion on board to help us collect during the procession. We were all very impressed by its reception from the thousands watching.

The Lions’ collection included help from our good friends from Cheltenham Lions Club and Minehead Lions Club.

Over £1,000 was collected and the carnival committee handed £600 to Burnham Lions as our share to support our charity account.

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Club news from around the South West Lion Doug Plume

The next outing for the Lions was Burnham-on-Sea Christmas light switch-on, where our Santa traditionally arrives on our train to be received by local dignitaries, before going to our club’s Santa Grotto to meet the local children and hand out gifts.

This is an annual event that we proudly run to give a small gift to local children. Although we never charge to see Santa, the children's parents kindly donated over £200 and Santa met over 250 children. Rufus the Lion also attended and offered some entertainment to the parents and children as they were queuing to enter Santa's grotto. This also gave us the opportunity to show how the front of the train can change its look. A local artist painted these, which we have made interchangeable to suit some of the different occasions our train attends.

Our final Christmas event on 23rd December, although not with our train, was Rufus the Lion and Santa helping at our regular marshalling point at the Burnham-on-Sea and Highbridge Parkrun. We regularly support this weekly event by supplying a marshal for the checkpoint where the runners and walkers turn to head back to the finish line. It appears Rufus and Santa were well received by everyone, young and old, while they were enjoying the run.

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Club news from around the South West Lion Steve Grummitt

Like all Lions clubs, Christmas always seems to be a very busy time and Tavistock's Club is no exception. It started at the end of November when the Club's Trees of Light were switched on in front of Tavistock Town Hall, forming the centrepiece of the town's Christmas lights. This is the 25th year for the Trees on which the lights are sponsored by individuals in memory of a departed loved one or the commemoration of a special event.

Around £160,000 has been raised since the first single tree in 1999 and the monies raised are distributed to local charities, which this year are the Plymouth & Cornwall Cancer Fund, St Luke’s Hospice, Tavistock Area Support Services, and the Parkinson's

amazing profit of just over £2,500 for Club funds!

Tavistock Support Group. All the costs are covered by the local funeral company, Morris Bros Tavistock Ltd, which ensures that all the proceeds go to the nominated charities. The Club is also indebted to South West Lakes Trust which donated the trees, and the Tavistock Town Council works team that erected and decorated the trees.

Dickensian Evening in Tavistock on the first Friday in December is one of the busy times in Tavistock, with hundreds of locals and visitors in town for late nights shopping, watching the street entertainers and sampling street food delights. For the Tavistock Club, it was the busiest evening ever, with over 1,000 burgers and hot dogs being cooked in less than four hours, generating an

And for the fourth year, the Club offered its local postal delivery service, selling stamps for 40p, with nine post boxes situated with various traders and locations around the town.

Around 4,000 cards were delivered by Club members and friends in the week leading up to Christmas, and the photo shows Club members Chris Northey and Richard Jones delivering a post box to the volunteers at the Tavistock Visitor

Information Centre.

Not content with all the above activities, Club members escorted Father Christmas on his sleigh to eight local primary and junior schools in the Tavistock area, distributing, to the various classes, presents that had been financed by a donation of £1,000 from Tavistock Athletic Club. Presents included books, games and two guinea pigs for the children at Horrabridge School. The photos show Father Christmas with his elves and the

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Club news from around the South West Lion Steve Grummitt

children at Lamerton Primary School and on his sleigh built by Club member Richard Marlow at Mary Tavy Primary School. For several years, the Club has sold locally themed Christmas cards through various outlets in Tavistock, and, for the first time, it produced a calendar featuring local scenes taken by several photographers including two Club members. It proved so popular that it sold out, so something that will be repeated next year with a greater print run!

So, all in all, a very busy time for Club members who hopefully will have enjoyed a restful and peaceful time with their families over Christmas building up their strength for an equally busy 2024!

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Club news from around the South West Lion David Fitzpatrick

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Club news from around the South West Lion Geoff Kaye

On Friday 19th January Truro Lion President Richard Moore visited the home of Lion Mike Kaliszczak to present him with a very well-deserved Melvin Jones Fellowship Award. This was in recognition of his serving as the Treasurer for 10 years with his previous club, Lancaster and Morecambe Lions in Lancashire.

Lion Mike is currently the Vice President of the Lions Club of Truro and will take over as President on 1st July 2024.

Photos show President Richard Moore presenting the award to Lion Mike and

President Richard and Lion Mike with his wife Jane, together with Membership Chairman Lion Bill Rudd and Public Relations Officer Lion Geoff Kaye.

Lion David Atkins

DISTRICT CONVENTION DELEGATE/ ALTERNATE FORMS I want to remind all club secretaries to please return the District 105SW Convention Delegate and Alternate form to me by Monday 26th February to ensure that all club delegates and alternates are registered for our District Convention in good time. This will ensure that members arriving at our District Convention can be given their voting cards and forms swiftly on arrival.

Please note that all clubs are asked to return the form even if no members will be attending.

If you want a further copy of the form distributed by the District Secretary Lion Glynn Hill at the end of December, please contact me.

Thank you.

David Atkins District Constitution, Nominations & Resolutions Officer liondatkins@btinternet.com H 01458 443055 M 07785 900682

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Club news from around the South West Lions David Fitzpatrick

Tiverton Lions Club members were presented with a 50-year certificate by PDG David Fitzpatrick on Monday evening 22nd January at their regular business meeting to commemorate 50 years of service from their Charter date of 20th September 1973.

The certificate was signed personally by:

Sophie Her Royal Highness Duchess of Edinburgh GCVO, and Chair of Council Lion David Pope.

Regrettably not all members could be in attendance due to severe weather conditions and a road closure.

Nonetheless, all present participated in a celebratory drink to mark the occasion.

Pictured L to R. Secretary Mike Aspray, PDG David Fitzpatrick, President Ivor Payne, Treasurer Margaret Drew

Lion Thomas Miner

Fellow Lions, The monthly zoom meeting for district diabetes officers resumed last week (Jan 19th) after being postponed for November and December because of illness and Christmas. It was a good meeting, partly because there was representation from Diabetes UK and Lions HQ, but also because we had a good month in November with MD service activity up from the usual 1% to 14% as clubs organised activities around World Diabetes Day. The partnership with Diabetes UK is almost complete. It will be non-contractual, just two charities working together to promote diabetes awareness. We are hoping to have a Diabetes UK member speak to Lions about diabetes via a streaming channel hopefully in April.

It was felt that the trifold leaflet 'Lions Fighting Diabetes' needs updating. Hopefully this will be done soon to include, amongst other changes, the 'Know the Risk' QR code.

Most of the meeting focused on the need to promote exercise and healthy eating. At Budleigh Lions, along with Crediton Lions, we are trying to organise dietary/cookery workshops for diabetics. So, if any clubs have tried this and can offer any advice or help, it would be much appreciated.

All in all, a promising start to a new year.

Kind Regards Tom Miner 105SW Diabetes District Officer

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Club news from around the South West

Lions Young Ambassador Award Finals Celebrate the 50th Anniversary taking place over the weekend of 16-18 February 2024

16-18 February will mark 50 years of the project that recognises young people volunteering in their local communities.

at The Village Hotel Castlegate Park Birmingham Road Dudley DY1 4TB

With the support of their sponsoring club, the most inspiring candidates

Booking details can be found at:

Ambassador Award finals. This is a fun – and busy weekend, not to

have progressed to represent each of the districts at the Lions Young

missed, where the finalists are invited to share their story, participate in social activities, and enjoy an awards presentation. https://lionsclubs.co/MemberArea/ home/lions-young-ambassador-finalsweekend/ Each of the finalist receives a £500 bursary to be used for welfare work on their chosen project, or for training to help them in this work. The overall winner becomes the Young Ambassador for Lions Clubs International of the British Isles. They are presented with a further £1,000, a trophy, the opportunity during the year to promote their project, and to take part in the European Young Ambassador Final.

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Club news from around the South West Lions Graham Kingsbury

Following our successful Christmas Draw, pictured above are the prize winners. This was a very successful event for Barnstaple Lions which raised over £1,000 for club funds. Barnstaple Lions will also be organising an Easter Craft Fair. For further details, see flyer and stall booking form on the following pages of this newsletter.

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Club news from around the South West Lion Graham Kingsbury

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Club news from around the South West Lion Graham Kingsbury

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Club news from around the South West Lion Tim Otter

Seven hundred and seventy “Christmas Thank Yous” to the people of Blackmore Vale from Blackmore Vale Lions Club. Keep Lions in plain sight (KLIPS) was alive and well at Christmas.

Through the haze of getting ready for Christmas, people from the Blackmore Vale discovered Lions from the Blackmore Vale Lions Club (BVLC) outside supermarkets and farm shops with buckets and card- readers. Thanks to the generosity of the people of Blackmore Vale, BVLC will be able to put circa £770.00 into its charity funds. Local people have dug deep in times of hardship and have been generous to a fault. As part of our Keep Lions in Plain Sight (KLIPS) initiative, we decided to spread ourselves as visibly and as frequently as we could.

Our thanks to: The Co-Op Sturminster Newton; Waitrose and Sainsbury’s in Sherborne, Morrisons Wincanton and the Udder Farm Shop, East Stour; for allowing us to camp out and to their patrons for their generosity and goodwill. Our thanks also to several volunteer helpers who boosted the numbers with the buckets. It is all very much appreciated by BVLC. We were very touched when the Sherborne Combined Church Choirs turned up outside Waitrose to serenade passers-by as we collected money. It could not have been better had we planned it, but two charity organizations did each other a good turn! We hope local print journals will be good enough to continue the recent run of good publicity we have had and spread word of our activities.

One of the by-products of this sort of activity is you never know who you will meet. Whilst collecting, we were approached by a retired GP who collects used spectacles for Sierra Leone, where she had recently worked for a short while. She discovered the Lions were collecting most used glasses from the local opticians and we were in competition. An exchange of details and a short discussion and we think we have a way to help her and Sightsavers at the same time, as she has a direct link to the main eye clinic in Freetown and the district clinics in the wider country. Doing good takes many forms. Lion Ian Simpson is on the case.

And Next for KLIPS, BVLC were at Wincanton Races on Thursday 18 Jan and organising the Blackmore Vale Half Marathon on Sunday 4 Feb @11.00 @ Bishop's Caundle- BVLC. (To sponsor or help, see https://bvlions.yolasite.com/ or take part.) see https://bvlhm.yolasite.com or RUNBRITAIN.COM/RACES) The Race Director of the Half Marathon has written to all clubs in Dorset and Somerset asking for help to organize the Half Marathon as this year our major charity beneficiary is The Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance. It’s a major event and huge logistic operation for a small club, so we rely on all the help we can get from other organizations and clubs.

We hope to see you either as helpers or as runners.

If it’s not too late, BVLC wish you good health, happiness, success and prosperity in 2024.

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Club news from around the South West

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Club news from around the South West Lion Lynn Goold

Lion Alastair Barr It is with great sadness that we have to inform you of the death of Lion Alastair Barr. Alastair had been a member of the Fowey River Lions since 1987. He had been President of the club three times, Treasurer three times and Secretary for a total of 18 years during his membership. Alastair was well known in the wider Lions family as well, having held the position of Zone and Regional Chairman, which covered Lions clubs in the South West of England. His knowledge, hard work and attention to detail will be greatly missed. Our thoughts are with his wife and family.

New President and Treasurer

Lion Steve Jones

Lion Ruth Rowse

We are pleased to announce the appointment of Lion Steve Jones as President. Steve joined the club in 2019 and for the last two years has served as our social secretary, finding us different venues to hold our monthly social meeting. Steve said, “I am privileged to be following in Lion Tony’s footsteps after all his hard work and want to keep the club going”.

Our new Treasurer is Lion Ruth Rowse. Ruth joined the club in 2023 and has very kindly filled this important position.

President: Lion Steve Jones

Secretary: Lion Lynn Goold

Treasurer: Lion Ruth Rowse

email: foweyriverlions@gmail.com facebook: foweyriverlions

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Tel: 0345 833 7484

Club news from around the South West Lion David Fitzpatrick

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Club news from around the South West Lion Andy Burnard

I’ll have a camera please In October 2023 Lion Andy Burnard led a convoy of four vans to Poland and back on Trip 16. Every driver involved on this occasion is an active member of a Lions club. Also on the trip was Thomas Dowdall, taking time out during his half-term break. Thomas is the son of Jamie Dowdall from Callington Lions Club.

As with many of these trips there is from time to time the need to make a detour to avoid heavy traffic and sometimes avoid accidents on the motorway. The need to keep moving safely is paramount. During the five-day 2,500 mile round trip Thomas was the designated navigator, guiding us successfully through residential areas in Germany, shopping centres in Poland and on one occasion, through an industrial estate in Warsaw when the preferred route was not available. As a thank-you to Thomas, all those present on the trip had a surprise whip-round. On the return to the UK some of those on the convoy invited Thomas to a meal and made the presentation to him. Thomas has decided to put the money towards a new camera for a forthcoming school trip.

Photo is from L to R— Phil Volz (Tavistock Lions), Thomas Dowdall, Keith Dolby (Callington Lions), Ken Shields (Tavistock Lions) and Dad Jamie Dowdall from Callington Lions.

Lion Kevin Brookes

Thank you to everyone who has contributed to this month’s South West Post. Deadline for articles and photographs for next month’s newsletter is 25th February 2024.

Send to k2brookes@aol.com Until then...

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